Piet van Dongen

A new musical direction

April 01, 2009 @ 01:56 (11 months, 2 weeks ago) - filed under general

Dear fans, friends and passersby,

As most of you might have noticed, my level of musical production has reached an all-time low this year. This is partly to blame on my demanding career as a designer, but that’s not the real reason for this lack of musical output. Let me explain.

During these past few years as ‘techno producer’ (a label people chose to give me), I have always been interested in other kinds of music: classical, jazz, indie, pop, rock, metal… My Last.fm profile is proof of this love for a diversity of sounds.

Yet I always kept making and playing techno, house, minimal, electronica… (Whatever you want to call it)

From my first Wolfskuil Records release to my personal highlight on Audiomatique. From my first performance in an empty club somewhere in Tilburg, to my Awakenings set. I have thoroughly enjoyed all this, it was a true adventure, a dream come true.

But this era has come to an end. At least, for me.

I really tried, though: I forced myself to make whole tracks. I locked myself up in my room for days. I told people to pressure me into finishing an album. I did. But it just didn’t feel right. It was fake, and it was showing. My music sounded like crap to me. Fake, forced crap.

So last month, I finally made a decision: no more techno for me.

At first I felt really bad for denying my roots, but the last few weeks have been a blast for me. I feel so free now that I can make whatever I want. I don’t feel the pressure of people expecting certain sounds, I don’t feel restricted in choosing instruments, chords and arrangements. Hell, I even bought me a mic and started playing the guitar again!

Of course, it will take me a long time before I have found a sound that I’m comfortable with, but that doesn’t matter. For the first time in what seemed to be decades, I experience the the joy of making music again. Just like I did when I started making techno.

I also decided not to change my artist name. All my releases have always had one thing in common: it was me who made the music. It came from my heart. So whatever comes out next, it will still be labeled ‘Piet van Dongen’.

As a bonus, and to proof that I’m serious about this (although it may not sound serious and polished to you :)), I put up the result of one of my studio sessions online. It’s a cover of an Adam Green song, of whom I have been a fan for years (some friends even say I look a little like him).

It’s false, I know. I misheard the lyrics, I know. I didn’t put it up as a finished product. I just wanted to let you know what direction the new Piet van Dongen is going in:

Piet van Dongen – I Like Drugs (This links to SoundCloud, where you can hear and download it).

Please enjoy and stay tuned for more new music!